Finding Hag Stones

We have had a restful few days here in Orange, but we still managed to squeeze in a visit to some of our favorite haunts.

Henry and I adore aquariums so we headed for the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. We have been members for years and Henry and I have done behind the scenes tours of this thoroughly modern facility that is focused on conservation, rehabilitation and protection. The facility is enormous and displays over 12,000 creatures. Our favorites are the shark lagoon, the sea otter habitat and the lorikeet forest. The puffins and penguins were the stars on this particularly day. So comical!

From a distance we saw the Queen Mary, another of our favorites. We have so many happy memories on board, particularly with my dear cousin Pippa and her family when they came out to visit, a good few years back now. She swears she met a ghost on board after getting lost on an upper deck. The ship has definitely got spooky vibes!

We went to eat at Kim's favorite place, Port O'Call Village at the fish market in San Pedro, right on the wharf. Unfortunately the whole place had been demolished, including the restaurant, so we ventured off to find another place to eat. it was delicious but not the same as picking out your own fish and having it cooked right in front of you. These pics are from the last time we were there.

Happily, we found somewhere else for lunch in the nearby Marina.

Later we went on to Cabrillo Beach where we lazed around for the afternoon. It is one of my favorite beaches in the LA area as it is a hag stone beach. Hag stones are sedimentary stones found on beaches, rivers or lakes, that have naturally formed holes in them. They are believed to have magical, protective properties that ward off negative energies and are sometimes called Witches Stones or Fairy Stones. I had a relaxing afternoon mooching amongst the rocks happily finding the hag stones. 

Later we went to enjoy the sunset, fly our kites and enjoy the Korean Friendship Bell at Angel's Gate Park, up on the hill, overlooking the Pacific. Another easy breezy evening.